End of the World
by C. E. Mott
Summary: She had been dead for seven Yet there she was, right in front of Named for the Ingrid Michaelson


Tony blinked furiously, trying to clear the thick cobwebs from his eyes. Gradually, color began to leak through. Metallic silver bounced through his vision, saturated with shadow and punctured with the occasional bright, artificial light. He could feel cold seeping into his skin, cutting straight through to the bone, yet he did not shiver. He remained still until the haze left and tried to place his surroundings. Suddenly, a head appeared above him.

"Come on, Tony, it's time to get up." Tony's eyebrows furrowed as he recognized the face hovering over his.

"Kate?" She smiled crookedly. He sat up quickly, nearly knocking heads with her. She jerked her head back, a frown appearing on her face.

"Watch it," She snapped as she pulled her hair behind her ear. Tony jumped off the table. His mouth hung open slightly, waiting for words to fill the gap.

"H-how have you been?" He stuttered, attempting to break the silence. She cocked her eyebrow and laughed.

"How have you been? You haven't seen me in seven years and that's the best you can do?" Tony stuffed his hands in his pockets and leaned against the table, offering a sheepish grin.

"Well?" He asked. Kate crossed her arms.

"I've been good."

"I've been good? You haven't seen me in seven years and that's the best you can do?" Kate laughed as Tony's grin split into a larger smile.

"I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, Kate. There's no one to have food fights with anymore." She chuckled.

"It's been too long."

"It has. You look good." He cocked an eyebrow, his expression becoming teasing. "Do you still have the bikini bottom I gave you? I'd love to see if you look this good all over." Kate gave him a disgusted look.

"DiNozzo!" He grinned voraciously.

"Feeling shy, Katie?" She narrowed her eyes, a sly smile slipping over her lips.

"Let's go." She brushed past him, motioning for him to come with her.

"Where are we going?" He followed her into the elevator. She smirked.

"Well, I have a bikini to show you."

Twenty minutes later, Tony was at Kate's apartment to pick her up. She stepped out in a turquoise sundress and white flip-flops, her hair framing her face with loose waves. Tony's navy shirt folded as he leaned against the doorframe, looking her up and down.

"I can't see the bikini." He offered her a half-smile, his eyes hidden by sunglasses.

"Patience is a virtue." She shut the door behind her and they headed out to his car.

"And you would know all about those, wouldn't you?" He opened the door for her. "Any chance I can see that Catholic school girl uniform after this?"

"In your dreams, DiNozzo." He hopped in the driver's seat and they took off down the road. Within a few minutes, a strip of white sand stretched before them, leading into the mirror-like waters aglow with the bright pallet of sunset. Tony quickly parked, and the two began to walk across the beach.

The warm breeze tangled its fingers in their hair and the sand swallowed their feet. They walked until the foam from the waves licked their skin, then sank down next to each other. Kate closed her eyes, tipping her face towards the sun. Tony stared into the bright sphere as it descended until his vision was consumed with light. Mesmerized, he hardly noticed when Kate rested her head on his shoulder.

"I wish I could watch more of these." Kate muttered.

"What?" Tony looked down at her.

"You know, sunsets. People tell you every day is a gift, carpe diem, and all that stuff, but…well, it really is nice to watch the sun set and not have to think about anything. You just watch and know that you'll be asleep soon, without worry or fear. I think if the sunset was the last thing I ever saw, I would be happy." She gazed across the sea with a distant look.

"How would you know you weren't dreaming?"

"I wouldn't. For a while, at least. I think that's what would be so nice about it. You'd really be at peace." Silence settled on them, and darkness gently rained down.

"I think the last thing I'd want to see is someone I love." Tony broke the quiet. Kate lifted her head off his shoulder.

"Why is that?"

"To try and tell them it would be okay. And to leave with some memory of them, some memory of that love." Kate contemplated this for a moment.

"I think I'd like that too." She replied softly. Tony smiled at her.

"In that spirit, how about you show me your bikini now?" Kate raised her eyebrows.

"You really know how to kill a moment."

"Now or never, Kate. I'm tired of waiting." She rolled her eyes.

"Never then."

"Alright." Tony stood, pulling Kate up with him.

"Tony, what are you—" Kate was cut short as Tony took her by the waist and put her over his shoulder. "TONY! PUT ME DOWN!" Kate wriggled in his arms as Tony headed for the water.

"I had to find _some_ way to see your bikini!" He put her down right on the edge of the waves, the blue water crashing around her legs. "Now either you can go swimming with your dress or without. It's your choice." Kate glared at him.

"Fine." She pulled off her sundress and tossed it as far as up the shore as she could. Tony beamed as he took in the sight of her in a blue and white striped bikini. Waggling his eyebrows at her, Tony wolf-whistled and Kate rolled her eyes.

"_Now _you look ready for a swim." Kate raised her eyebrow.

"Do you really want to go swimming right now?"

"Yes." He smiled, his expression daring her to jump in.

"Alright." To Tony's surprise, Kate turned around and dove into the water. She reemerged a moment later, flicking her wet hair out of her face. "You coming, DiNozzo? Or are you too chicken?"

"DiNozzos are _never_ chicken." Tony plunged into the water, coming up beside her. "Geez, the water's cold." Kate grinned.

"Let's warm up then." She slapped the water, splashing Tony across the face.

"If that's how you want to play," Tony trailed off as he hit the water as hard as he could. Kate threw her arms up, a small squeal escaping her as the water fell against her.

Soon enough, the two were engaged in a fierce splash fight, laughing as they sprayed each other. Kate began to dash for shore, but Tony followed in quick pursuit, catching her just as they reached the edge of the water. They collapsed onto the wet sand, their arms and legs tangling together as they fell. Kate turned to look at Tony and their faces were so close, each caught their breath for a moment.

"I always knew I'd see you again," Tony whispered. Then his lips were pressed against hers and her hands were cupping his face. The cool waves slid over them and the light seeped through their eyelids, filling them with brightness.

Then the light was gone as the sun disappeared underwater and the moon had vanished beneath the whitecaps. All that was left were stars like fireflies around their head, soft light close enough to touch.

…

People dressed in blue filled the room. The only sound was a steady beeping. The man in the center with bloody hands and scrubs looked at the line that cut across the screen, that nullified everything until that moment with its unbending light, and sighed. Then he looked at the clock.

"Time of death, 1:43 am."

"_When the moon breaks down and the tide goes out of control  
>Will you find me in the water and swim me to the stars<br>At the end of the world will you find me so that we can go together"_

**A/N: Sorry if I shocked you with the character death. I didn't mark it because I wanted it to be a surprise. The lyrics are from "End of the World" by Ingrid Michaelson. It's a beautiful song; I highly recommend it.**


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